Response to d4

I've been playing Grunfeld lines recently as black, but I haven't been fairing as well as I would like.  What defense do you recommend in response to 1. d4?  I employ the classical (2...Nc6) Sicilian against 1. e4. if that offers any insight into my playing style.  Slav, Benoni, Dutch?  any suggestions?

2...Nc6 isn't the Classical Sicilian, but it does lead to wide open, theoretical, sharp, tactical positions.

So I'd go for something like the classical Dutch (lines with e6, Be7, and 0-0) or the Semi-Slav.

It depends on your style and preferred positions. If you like solid positions - go for the Slav. If you love attacking, KID would work great. :)

Thanks for the responses.  The grunfeld is very complex, and it is I think too suble for me.  One small mistake and whites pawns go from sitting ducks to a steamroller.

The Dutch seems interesting, and I think I might want to learn it.  What confuses me though is that I have not seen this played at high levels in the short time that I've been following chess (about a year); whereas I see the KID and Slav played consistantly.  Why is that?  It leads me to believe that it is not as good of an opening as the others, or am I wrong? 

Well it's not that simple. The dutch does weaken the kingside and that means there will always be more tactics and long term strategic dangers for the king to constantly watch out for. This makes variations like the leningrad dutch difficult to play. Objectively positions might be equal for a perfect defender, like a computer, but for a human it can be hard to play those positions without making an error and getting smashed. I would not recommend the dutch when there are more simple and solid alternatives that also give you winning chances.

I never said the positions are inferior. I said they are difficult to play because you really need to look where you step or you get smashed right away. My point about the the leningrad dutch is that you risk alot but gain only a slight attack off it. You can get initiative and attacks out of other d4 responses without risking as much. So for many players it might be more practical to simply choose something else, like the grunfeld for example.

Besides it is just as important to learn to play long equal positions aswell. Many aggressive players totally lack that skill and lose because of it. I think a more balanced opening will give you more sound play.

i've been playing the king's indian defense and i am enjoying it so far.

i did play around with the benoni/benko gambit, but i did not fair well (although some of the games were quite exciting).

i've recently given the grunfeld a shot also and it does seem quite complex. some of its lines i do not really enjoy, so i did find myself getting into uncomfortable situations sometimes.

imho, i`d suggest the KID.

although, if you`re really adventurous, i`d suggest the dutch stonewall variation (1. d4 f5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. g3 c6 5. Bg2 d5 6. O-O Bd6).

The thing with playing the Dutch if you are a Sicilian and not a Pirc/Modern or French player is that you need to know the anti-Dutch lines which white may throw at you. (You need to know the French if you are playing the Stonewall or Classical variation or the Pirc/Modern if you're playing a Leningrad should white play 2.e4 which is rare but still)

Granted, theoretically, as with any sideline, the anti-Dutch lines are not as great as the mainline, but I find that white can really limit your counterplay.

Personally, im using a Sicilian Accl Dragon and sometimes the Dragon against e4 but im thinking about going to the Najdorf or Schevenigan soon. Like you, I don't have a fixed response to d4 although I play d4 myself (Theres so much to choose from) but lately ive been looking into the Slav Proper.

Personally I like to play the Grunfeld and the KID in OTB tournaments.  Other than that I occasionally play the Chigorin.

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I suggest you play the Leningrad dutch. I will be the first dutch player to admit that it takes a lot of practice and study to get used to this opening, as well as some brutal defeats along the way. I have been playing it on and off for close to a year now, and my results are probably worse than my other openings. I do believe, however, now that I am playing it exclusively vs. 1.d4, my results and understanding of the positions will increase considerably over time. Here are some reasons to play it:

1) You will have a universal weapon not only against 1.d4, but also against 1.c4 and 1.Nf3.

2) White cannot make the game boring or drawish like he can in the KID or Slav (exchange variations). I cannot think of any forced drawing lines either, so even if white is slightly better, you will have counter chances and white won't be able to avoid a fight.

3) It has far less theory than the KID, Gruenfeld or Semi-Slav, which are black's other main options for a sharp game.

4) It avoids boring 1.d4 sidelines like the london, colle, Torre attack and the rest of them. White can still try to play them against you, but usually those set-ups are ineffective against the dutch and at the very least will give you counterplay and won't be symmetrical or boring.

5) A lot of players below 2000 or so won't know what to do against the dutch. They may know the first 8-10 moves in a mainline but will often lack practice and understanding of the positions. So even if white is slightly better in the mainlines, which I think he is, your opponents are unlikely to have the knowledge to achieve that edge and if you know what you are doing you will probably get an equal game where you are the one who is more comfortable.

6) Leningrad endgames often favour black because the "exposed" dutch king gets into the centre a lot faster than his white counterpart. I really think this is a good reason to play it because if white is unambitious and just tries to trade down quickly he could be in for some trouble.

7) You often get to attack the king directly, which seems rather uncommon in modern chess. This can be scary for a lot of white players when they see you destroying their kingside with a piece sac or a pawnstorm and will give you a psychological edge even if the attack isn't completely sound.

8) The Leningrad Dutch is an awesome name for an opening!

If you do decide to play it just remember that it will take quite a bit of time before you understand the positions properly! Black makes some big strategic risks, but you know what they say, no risk, no reward! Also, make sure you are well aquainted with the anti dutch lines if you start with a 1.f5 move order, as they can be quite dangerous, although usually fun! Kindermann's book "Leningrad System" is the book to get if you go down this road. It is excellent and will be the bible for leningrad players for years to come!

lets see if you want closed positions that arent complex play the slav/ ,benoni,QGD, if you want open games play grunfeld, nimzo, kings indian or transpose into pirc defense, also if you want a wild card against d4 play e6 or c6 transposing into(for e6) french, QGD, or (for c6) a caro kann or a slav

I like to play 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6, and if Nc3 I play Bb4, but on Nf3 or g3 I play d5...usually 3.Nf3 d5 4.Nc3 c6 with a Semi-Slav that I have never actually studied any theory on but seem to do okay. I think with the Dutch, Black should know some theory. I can't recommend the Stonewall Dutch since White has a simple plan to get an easy game involving exchanging the darksquare bishops, with b3, Bb2, Qc1 and Ba3 often, after which Black has a bit of a cramped game. But the other Dutch lines might be okay. The Dutch lines with 2.g3 (or 1.d4 e6 2.c4 f5 3.g3) tend to favor White because his lightsquare bishop is much better than Black's, or White can go for instant knockout after 1.d4 f5 with 2.h3!? and 3.g4 as Korchnoi liked to play, which I play in blitz with great results, so you should at least have some idea of what to do against that..I'm just replying to all of these Dutch comments with this part.

For someone who plays the Sicilian, counterplay is kind of the name of the game, and I think the Nimzo-Indian Defense is great at giving Black lots of play. After 3.Nf3, White can't play the most dangerous lines against the Benoni (involving an early f4) so a lot of players play 3...c5 only by this move order, and 4.d5 exd5 5.cxd5 d6 6.Nc3 g6 7.O-O Bg7 is as fine for Black as any Benoni. Also I should point out the sort of Blumenfeld gambit Black can try after 3...c5 4.d5 b5!? which I used to play sometimes too (this works on 3.g3 or 3.Nf3 after 2...e6)

Of course, the Queen's Indian is also a fine opening, although White gets an annoying edge that can last well into the middlegame even just by making reasonable moves. And with my 3...d5 move order I have found that you also have to know the Exchange Queen's Gambit Declined.

Another opening that's pretty simple for Black to play and learn is the Queen's Gambit Accepted. You just have to watch out for White's kingside attacks, and learn a bit of theory.

And I'm surprised nobody has suggested the Benko Gambit? Even the Benoni was mentioned first...and the Dutch...